State settles Mt. Pleasant Center abuse case

A man who sued the state of Michigan after his disabled son was injured while living at the now-defunct Mt. Pleasant Center has settled out of court.

Robert McGuire agreed to the state’s offer of $145,000 to settle the suit, filed in federal court in Detroit in February 2010, against the state, the Mt. Pleasant Center, then-director Ken Longton and several others.

McGuire alleged that his son, Matthew McGuire, was is mentally ill, suffered broken ribs and bruises while living at the facility on West Pickard Road near Harris Street.

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Matthew’s injuries were not in dispute; the issue was how the injuries occurred at the facility, which was operated by the Michigan Department of Community Health and closed in 2009.

McGuire, who lived in Macomb County at the time the suit was filed, alleged that a staff member repeatedly struck Matthew Feb. 20, 2008, kicking him in the ribs and causing a black eye.

According to court records, the incident was reported the following day, and another defendant who worked at the facility responded April 18, 2008, that an investigation concluded that the incident didn’t happen.

Another complain was filed at the facility April 28, 2008, alleging that staff members called Matthew names and that one of the employees tried to hit Matthew, according to court records.

A June 2008 report at the facility again indicated that investigation showed the complaint was unfounded, according to court records.

McGuire’s attorneys, Alyson Oliver of the Oliver Law Group in Rochester and Daniel Gustafson of Gustafson and Gluek in Minnesota argued that Mt. Pleasant Center employees cornered, beat, kicked, punched, verbally abused and physically abused Matthew, according to court records.

Assaults on Matthew allegedly continued, including one Dec. 14, 2008, that led to Matthew being taken to then-Central Michigan Community Hospital in Mt. Pleasant, where physicians found that he had at least five broken ribs, and large bruises in his pelvic and upper thigh areas, according to court records.

Complaints were filed Feb. 17, 2009, after Matthew was allegedly punched in the face by two employees, knocking a tooth loose and breaking the surrounding bone; and Feb. 19, 2009, when employees allegedly yelled at Matthew and said his parents were trouble-makers and “that they were crazy,” according to court records.

“Despite the repeated complaints submitted wherein (McGuire) alleged horrible abuse at the hands of the staff of Mount Pleasant Center, and despite the overwhelming evidence, including medial evidence demonstrating five broken ribs, in support of (McGuire’s) complaints, Center management ... refused to property investigate (McGuire’s) claims, operating under a clear presumption that (McGuire) was not truthful in his allegations and that (Mt. Pleasant Center) staff members were truthful,” according to court documents.

Management at the facility continued to let staff accused of harming Matthew have access to him, according to court records.

Oliver and Gustafson contended in the suit that the facility had a history of similar incidents, citing Robbie Wright, who was found dead in a bathtub in 2005.

Wright was autistic and his cause of death was a ruptured stomach, blood loss and severe testicular injuries, according to the lawsuit.

McGuire’s attorneys claimed violations of Matthew’s Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights of personal safety and the right to medical care and attention, and use of excessive force, according to court records.

They also argued violations of Matthew’s Eighth Amendment rights, intentional infliction of emotional distress, gross negligence, and assault and battery.

In the state’s response to the allegations, McGuire’s complaints were investigated “by independent entities” that concluded there was no wrongdoing.

The state also responded that federal claims against the defendants were barred by qualified immunity, according to court records.